Tasting - Knotty Vines, Cabernet Sauvignon

Name: Knotty Vines

Variety: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon 

Region: California 

Country: United States

Year: 2020

Price: 8.99$

Wine Review from Wine Enthusiast: "This hearty, full-bodied wine is not shy about its grilled plum, iron and charcoal flavors. They give it an earthy, rustic quality that's appetizing" - Jim Gordon of Wine Enthusiast. 

My Wine Review using Wine Folly: I have never tried a Cabernet Sauvignon before and honestly just picked it up randomly not knowing what I was in for... Wine Folly on page 88 describes Cabernet Sauvignon as full bodied and full tannins. Conducting the sniff test, I immediately was just overwhelmed by how strong it smelled of warm, rich, and a little spicy. Wine Folly recommends to decant Cabernet Sauvignons for 60+ minutes, which I did not but probably should have. The first smells I got were of dark, red, fruit like cherry and prunes. It smells pretty jammy. When tasting the wine, my tongue was immediately overwhelmed by how full bodied this wine is, I guess I am not used to full bodied wines yet. It almost tastes a little sweaty, like biting into a leather belt. But the fruit flavors tasted of dark cherry and blackberries. The aftertaste almost tastes like you just took a shot of spiced rum with flavors of nutmeg. Overall, I would try another Cabernet Sauvignon again BUT I would pair it with a meal such as a grilled steak like Wine Folly suggests on page 88, and I would decant it as well just to let the flavors mellow. 

Tasting - Chalkboard Rosé

Name: Chalkboard Rosé

Variety: 100% Merlot 

Region: Vin de France

Country: France

Year: 2020

Price: 7.99$

Wine Review from Ultimate Wine Challenge: "Very clean and elegant on the nose, merely offering hints of white peach and lemon peel. More fresh fruits emerge on the palate, showing fuji apple, underripe peach, and white grapefruit, with a bright, zesty finish."

My Wine Review using Wine Folly: There is no "rosé" section in Wine Folly because of course rosé can be made from any type of grape. So I used the Merlot category. When conducting the sniff test, the first smells were very floral, Wine Folly on page 132 Kindle edition notes that Merlots have floral notes of violet but every time I've smelled a violet, it just smells like grass... And I did get some more vegetable smells from the wine. Another interesting smell was of plum tomatoes and I believe thats because the acidity of the wine. When tasting the wine, it is very dry, acidic, but refreshing. I tasted grapefruit and more herbal notes. There are also flavors of peach. Again, the wine is very dry so each of the fruit flavors are just the the bare bones. But when letting the wine rest on the tongue it has a little spice to it, which Wine Folly suggests the spice notes are of incense's which I can see! Overall, I enjoyed this wine but I probably would opt for a rosé that is a little sweeter.